Trolley-catcher.



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(Application led Aug, 80, 1902.)

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ELMER M. ZWING, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

TR'oLLEY-CATcHPER.

SPECIFICATION forming partof Letters Patent N o. 715,190, dated December 2, 1902. Application tiled August 30, 1902.V Serial No. 121.622. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern,.-

Be it known that I, ELMEE M. Zwnve, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Philadelphia, (Olney,) in the county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have irlin view is the provision of means for auto-l matically preventing a trolley-pole from ying upward to a vertical position when the trolley roller or shoe jumps od an overhead conductor, thus preventing the pole from as? suming a position sufficiently high to injure the parts or break overhead stays or other parts.

A further object is the provision of a compact and simple device which may be securely applied in'any desired position on a suit-able part of an electrically-propelled car, said device consisting ofY comparatively few parts, simple in construction, and Vcheap of manufacture and operating in a way to secure maximum efficiency.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will appear from the subjoined description, and the novelty will be dened by the claims. f

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure l is a side elevation of a portion of a trolley-car, showing my improved catcher applied in one operative position thereto. Fig. 2 is an enlarged view, in front elevation, of the catcher. Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional elevation through the same, and Fig. 4 is'an inverted plan view of the catcher.

In carrying my invention into practice I employ a suitable frame' to support the several working parts; but the particularA form of this frame is not material. A practical construction of the frame Ais shown by the draw ings, the same consisting of a fiat base a and a supporting-plate b, said parts being cast in a single piece of metal and the plate being arranged to extend substantially at right angles to the base. The base ct is provided with the parallel lugs or ears c, which are disposed by the fasteners 8.

alongside of the plate, and said plate is constructed with the bulged side faces d, and in the `plate and its faces d is formed a plungerchamber e. The plate b is provided with an eye f, adapted for the passage of the trolleyrope, andto permit the rope to be easily introduc'ed in the eye of the plate I make the latter with a removable outer section f', the latter being adapted to be secured to the plate bbythe removable fasteners f2. One half of the eye f is formed in the outer edge portion of the plate b, While the remaining half of the eye 'is inthe inner edge of the removable platesection f,the latter being fastened to the plate b to have its recess register with the recess of the plate, and thereby complete the eye, as

shown by Fig. 2. The plate b is furthermoreprovided with an outwardly-extending post g, and at the free end of this post is formed a tubular guide g', `the latter being at right angles to the base a and the post g, while it Vis parallel to the plate b. The post g and its tubular guide gare cast in a single piece with the plate b, the base a, and the ears c, thus simplifying the construction.

5 designates a slidable rod or pin which is mounted to move freely in an endwise direction in the guide g' and to have a limited amount of lost motion in said guide. This rod or piu is provided at its outer end with an eye 6, the latter being formed by recesses in an enlarged portion 5a of the rod and in a removable section 7. This removable section 7 of theslidable rod is fastened to the enlarged end 5L by suitable removable fasteners 8, andV it is evident that the rod-section 7 may be disconnected .from the end 55L of the rod for the purpose of easily introducing the trolley-rope therein, after which the 'the section 7 should be replaced and secured The inner end of the slidable rod is pivoted by a pin 9 to one arm of the lever 10, the latter being disposed between the lugs c and fulcrumed thereon by a pin or bolt ll. The otherend of this lever l0 is slightly bent and .extended into the chamber e of the supporting-plate b, said free end of the lever passing loosely through a slot 12, which communicates with the chamber c and is of sufficient length to allow the desired movement of the lever 10.

The chambere is provided at one end with a shoulder e', and this chamber opens into and communicates with the eye f, as shown by Fig. 3. In the chamber e is arranged a plunger 13, which is provided with an enlarged end or head 14, adapted for impingement by the free end of the lever 10. A shoulder 14 is formed between the plunger and its head, and around this plunger is f1tted a spring 15, the latter being housed Within the chamber e, so as to be seated at one end against the shoulder e and at its other end against the shoulder 14a of the plunger. This spring acts on the plunger to hold it in a retracted position, and the plunger is limited in one direction by the lever 10, which is normally pressed by the spring and plunger to the inclined position shown by Fig. 3. The spring also acts through the plunger and the lever to force the rod 5 to a position wherein its eye 6 is out of alinement with the eye f..

My improved device may be applied in any suitable position to a car B, the latter being equipped with a trolley-pole B'having a roller or shoe C arranged to ride under the overhead conductor D. As shown by Fig. 1, the catcher is applied against the rear side of the dashboard E of the car, the base a being secured in an upright position by means of suitable screws or bolts adapted to firmly fasten the frame A in position on the dashboard. I do not desire, however, to limit myself to any particular point of application of the catcher to the car, and the device is shown by Fig. 1 merely as a suitable Way of applying the means for locking the trolley-rope F against unrestrained upward movement. The rope F is fastened to the trolley-pole B', and it is led or carried through the eye 6 of the slidable rod 5 and the eye f of the support'- ing-plate b, said rope being easily introduced in the eyes by adjusting the removable sections 7 and f on the rod 5 and the plate b, respectively. The free end of the trolleyrope may be secured in any'suitable way to the dashboard E of the car, as at 16, and, as shown by Fig. 1, the rope is arranged to form a bight or loop 18, on which is ,loosely hung a shiftable weight 19, adapted to normally take up the slack of the trolley-rope. After the catcher shall have been properly applied to the car and the rope arranged substantially as shown by Fig. 1 the inertia of the weight 19 pulls on the rope to take up the slack therein, because the rope is capable of moving with comparativev freedom through the eyes f 6 of the catcher. When the roller or shoe C of the trolley leaves the conductor D through any cause, the springs of the trolley operate to force the pole in an upward direction. This upward movement of the pole is retarded and arrested, however, by the action of my catcher. When the rope F begins to run suddenly through the eye 6 of the rod 5, the pull on the rope forces the rod in an inward direction, and this movement of the rod is communicated through the lever 10 to the plunger 13, whereby the spring 15 is compressed and therend of the plunger is forced into the eye f. The plunger is thus forcibly pressed against the rope which passes through the eye f, and the movement of the rope is thus arrested, said rope serving to prevent the pole Bfrom moving sufficiently high to strike the cross Wires or guides employed to support the overhead conductor. The parts of the catcher act quickly and efficiently to arrest the sudden upward movement of the trolley-pole, and after the roller shall have been again adjusted into engagement with the conductor the spring 15 returns the rod 5 to a position wherein its eye 6 is out of alinement with the eye f.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. A trolley-catcher comprising a suitable frame having means for slidably confining a trolley-rope, a brake member disposed to engage the trolley-rope, a rope-actuated member on said frame, and connections between said rope-actuated member and the brake member.

2. A trolley-catcher comprising a suitable frame having means for slidably confining a trolley-rope, a brake-plunger slidable in said frame, an operating-rod having a rope-eye, and a lever pivoted to said rod and disposed in active relation to the plunger.

3. A trolley-catcher comprising a suitable frame, a spring-pressed brake element, a rope-actuated element having an eye, and means connecting said rope-actuated element with said brake element.

4. A trolley-catcher comprising a suitable frame having a chamber, a spring-retracted brake-plunger slidable therein, a lever fulcrumed on said frame and engaging with said brake-plunger, and a rope-actuated rod provided with an eye and slidably mounted von said frame, said rod being pivoted to said lever and normally held by the brake-plunger in an active position.

5. A trolley-catcher comprising a suitable frame having a rope-eye, a rope-actuated element provided with a rope-eye normally out of alinement with said eye of the frame, a brake element arranged to work in the eye of said frame, and connections between said brake element and the rope actuated element. l

6. A trolley-catcher comprising a suitable frame having a plate provided with a removable section and forming a rope-eye, a rod likewise having a removable section and a rope-eye, a brake-plunger slidable in said frame and adapted to project into the ropeeye thereof, a lever between the rod and the plunger, and a spring acting against one of said parts to hold the plunger retracted and to move the rod to its active position.

7. The combination with a trolley-pole and a rod attached thereto, of means for securing one end of the rope, a take-up weight fitted IOO IIO

izo said rope, a brake member normally inname to this specification in the presence of active wih relation to the rope, and an optWo subscribing witnesses. erating device engaging with said :rope and connected with the brake member to apply f ELMER M' ZWING' 5 the latter to the rope on a sudden upward Witnesses:

movement of the trolley-pole. WM. A. LECHLER, In testimony whereof I have signed my 1 MAY C. LECHLER. 

